FERC-regulated electricity markets must create level playing fields for clean energy. Wind, solar, and energy storage – either alone or in combination as hybrid power plants – are quickly becoming the most affordable resources on the system, and policymakers prefer them in many states and regions. Markets need to adapt to reflect their values and grid services capabilities rather than discriminate against them.
Priority: Optimize and evolve existing markets
Current power markets often discriminate against clean energy resources. Clean energy resources are quickly becoming the most affordable on the system and policymakers prefer them in many states and regions, but current FERC and grid operator policies overvalue legacy baseload fossil and nuclear plants. To overcome these challenges, the Sustainable FERC Project focuses on removing existing barriers, preventing new ones, and proposing solutions to optimize clean energy participation in those markets.
We support goals like:
- Fairly valuing the capacity value of wind, solar, storage, and customer-owned resources.
- Market access for customer-driven demand response technologies (e.g., electric vehicles, smart thermostats).
- Reducing chronic oversupply of fossil-heavy resources in some regions.
- Optimizing market designs in the West and the South in ways that facilitate clean energy development and save customers money.
- Reducing market-distorting practices like self-scheduling.
- Protecting the clean energy goals of the Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act.
Priority: Create new market structures
Some current market designs can only be improved so much. Sustainable FERC developed principles for market design in a transforming grid. Working with clean energy industries, academics, and our coalition, we are developing next-generation power market solutions.
For example, we seek to:
- Fully value the energy and capacity values of renewable energy resources in markets.
- Protect state-incentivized clean energy resources from discrimination in FERC-regulated power markets.
- Identify optimal conditions under which wholesale markets should reflect a price on carbon pollution from the power sector.
RECENT MARKET DESIGN PUBLIC DOCUMENTS
2019